Informal assessment for program planning and evaluation in special education

Abstract

Assessment for instructional planning and assessment for the evaluation of pupil progress are both central to the concept of an individualized educational program. For both of these assessment processes, teachers may use either formal or informal procedures. This article describes the advantages and disadvantages of informal approaches. The informal assessments reviewed are not “informal,”; i.e., spontaneous, unsystematic, casual or haphazard. Rather, they are carefully planned, systematically administered and precisely interpreted teacher‐made tests designed to obtain specific information useful in decision‐making. Although a bias in favor of informal procedures is clearly evident in the article, there is no attempt to suggest that they are a panacea. The article concludes with a discussion of the limitations of informal assessments and the cautions which must be exercised in their use.